Fantasy Football 2014: Mock Draft Tips, Strategy and Cheat Sheet

You asked for it—actually, I don't think anyone specifically requested this article—and now you have it: Timothy (call me Tim, please) Rapp's ultimate cheat sheet, strategy and mock draft guide. We probably could have crammed a few more enticing phrases in the title, but I'm pretty sure we have your attention.

Below, I'm going to slap you in the face with a flurry of fantasy information. Sleepers? We've got sleepers. Rankings? I've got some of those, too. Links to other fantasy articles I've written? You better believe it. Random thoughts? More than you would either want or need.

This is the real deal, folks. So kick back, have a beer (or a cup of tea, whatever floats your boat) and get your knowledge on.

Notes: Average draft position were determined by using the Fantasy Pros' aggregate ranking of average draft position from ESPN, CBS, NFL.com and Yahoo leagues. The following content is for standard-scoring leagues only, because I have serious philosophical issues with PPR leagues. Sorry, not sorry.

Top 30 Players

Fantasy Rankings

Draft Slot

Player

Team

Position

1

LeSean McCoy

Philadelphia Eagles

RB

2

Adrian Peterson

Minnesota Vikings

RB

3

Jamaal Charles

Kansas City Chiefs

RB

4

Matt Forte

Chicago Bears

RB

5

Peyton Manning

Denver Broncos

QB

6

Marshawn Lynch

Seattle Seahawks

RB

7

Jimmy Graham

New Orleans Saints

TE

8

Calvin Johnson

Detroit Lions

WR

9

Eddie Lacy

Green Bay Packers

RB

10

Drew Brees

New Orleans Saints

QB

11

Aaron Rodgers

Green Bay Packers

QB

12

Arian Foster

Houston Texans

RB

13

A.J. Green

Cincinnati Bengals

WR

14

Demaryius Thomas

Denver Broncos

WR

15

Doug Martin

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

RB

16

Zac Stacy

St. Louis Rams

RB

17

Dez Bryant

Dallas Cowboys

WR

18

Brandon Marshall

Chicago Bears

WR

19

DeMarco Murray

Dallas Cowboys

RB

20

Alfred Morris

Washington

RB

21

Julio Jones

Atlanta Falcons

WR

22

Matt Stafford

Detroit Lions

QB

23

Cam Newton

Carolina Panthers

QB

24

Le'Veon Bell

Pittsburgh Steelers

RB

25

Jordy Nelson

Green Bay Packers

WR

26

Montee Ball

Denver Broncos

RB

27

Randall Cobb

Green Bay Packers

WR

28

Antonio Brown

Pittsburgh Steelers

WR

29

Julius Thomas

Denver Broncos

TE

30

Alshon Jeffery

Chicago Bears

WR

Favorite Value Sleepers

Top Value Sleepers

Player

Position

Team

ADP

Cam Newton

QB

Carolina Panthers

52

Robert Griffin III

QB

Washington

55

Ryan Mathews

RB

San Diego Chargers

37

Rashad Jennings

RB

New York Giants

50

Ray Rice

RB

Baltimore Ravens

69

Trent Richardson

RB

Indianapolis Colts

72

Stevan Ridley

RB

New England Patriots

81

Wes Welker

WR

Denver Broncos

41

Victor Cruz

WR

New York Giants

43

Jeremy Maclin

WR

Philadelphia Eagles

76

Jordan Cameron

TE

Cleveland Browns

60

Favorite Breakout Sleepers

Top Breakout Sleepers

Player

Position

Team

ADP

Johnny Manziel

QB

Cleveland Browns

134

Toby Gerhart

RB

Jacksonville Jaguars

48

Bishop Sankey

RB

Tennessee Titans

58

Ben Tate

RB

Cleveland Browns

63

Michael Floyd

WR

Arizona Cardinals

62

T.Y. Hilton

WR

Indianapolis Colts

68

Kendall Wright

WR

Tennessee Titans

85

Terrance Williams

WR

Dallas Cowboys

97

Jordan Reed

TE

Washington

88

Zach Ertz

TE

Philadelphia Eagles

123

Favorite Deep Sleepers

Top Deep Sleepers

Player

Position

Team

Latavius Murray

RB

Oakland Raiders

John Brown

WR

Arizona Cardinals

Markus Wheaton

WR

Pittsburgh Steelers

Kelvin Benjamin

WR

Carolina Panthers

Ladarius Green

TE

San Diego Chargers

Devonta Freeman

RB

Atlanta Falcons

Teddy Bridgewater

QB

Minnesota Vikings

Don't stress over ADP here, save these players for late in your draft or even the waiver wire.

For the way I generally feel after shamelessly plugging my own work, click here.

Random Thoughts

Scott Halleran/Getty Images

He just wants to be the best fantasy football teammate he can be.

You've got quite the cheat sheet lined up thus far, I'd say. Now, I'll hit you with some random thoughts about fantasy (and probably some other things, too) that hopefully will help you this season.

If ever there was a year to draft running backs with your first two picks, this is the year. There is a ton of depth at quarterback and wide receiver, but there is uncertainty at running back after last year was such a fickle season for the position and more and more teams take the running-back-by-committee approach. I'm not saying you should reach for a running back in those rounds, but don't be afraid to go RB-RB to start your draft.

If you are more in favor of drafting players who maximize value over others at their position, Jimmy Graham should absolutely be a top-six pick. In 12-man leagues last year, Graham averaged 8.1 more points per week than the best bench player at his position, CobyFleener (here, "bench player" is defined as the 13th-best tight end in fantasy, since that player ideally wouldn't be started in fantasy leagues). Only Jamaal Charles (11.7), Peyton Manning (10.3), LeSean McCoy (9.7) and Matt Forte (9.0) had higher marks in 2013.

Guardians of the Galaxy was the most fun I've had going to the movies in a long time. It managed to pull off the rare feat of poking fun at the superhero genre while being an entertaining film in its own right. If you haven't seen it, please do—I'm guessing you'll find it quite refreshing, too.

There are a lot of players that either suffered injuries or had down seasons last year who could really make your fantasy team strong this year. I'm really intrigued to see how Arian Foster, Doug Martin, Victor Cruz, Robert Griffin III, Jeremy Maclin, Julio Jones and C.J. Spiller respond. Most of them can be had at really good values.

Scott Cunningham/Getty Images

Oh yeah, Julio Jones does stuff like that. I forgot how freaking amazing he was.

I don't know if the Arizona Cardinals can realistically get Andre Ellington 20 touches a game, but I love him as one of the biggest breakout candidates this season.

I don't know about you, but I'm still heartbroken about Robin Williams. He was the very definition of unique, the very definition of talented, the very definition of brilliant. He'll be sorely missed.

Andy Dalton will not be a top-five fantasy quarterback this season. He won't be a QB1 at all, in fact. The addition of Hue Jackson as offensive coordinator will make the team more balanced and they'll lean on the running game more than they did a year ago. Oh, and the following tweet from Peter Schrager of Fox Sports doesn't help:

Spoke to a rival coach about Andy Dalton last week. "Marvin Jones is the X factor for Andy." Marvin Jones, now, out with a broken foot.

It's always safer to draft players from consistently prominent offenses than teams who are generally poor. If you have a stockpile of Denver Broncos, Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints (just not the running backs!), Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears and New England Patriots, you should be just fine.

No, I don't have any thoughts on coffee I'd like to share with you.

Have fantasy questions? Hit me up on Twitter—I'll answer them and make some corny jokes, too. It's more fun than the ice-bucket challenge (but not not as rewarding).